Christmas/Transcript
Transcript Text reads: The Mysteries of Life with Tim and Moby. An animation shows a house on a snowy night. Caroling robots start to sing "Silent Night" outside the house. A robot, Moby, hears the carolers from his upstairs room. He frowns and stomps to the front door. He opens the door and throws a bucket of water at the carolers. The water freezes in mid-air. A caroler kicks the frozen water so it shatters. He blows a raspberry at Moby. The carolers walk away, and Moby slams the door. TIM: Man, you really love playing Scrooge this time of year, don't you? Moby turns around. He's dressed like Ebenezer Scrooge, from A Christmas Carol. He glares at Tim through tiny spectacles. MOBY: Beep! TIM: Aaugh! Moby holds a candle in one hand and dons his sleeping cap with the other. He walks away and clutches his lower back. TIM: Okay, but you're gonna miss our letter! Moby ignores Tim and continues walking up the stairs. Tim reads from a typed letter. TIM: Dear Tim and Moby, What's the meaning behind Christmas? Thanks, Erin and Matt TIM: Well, it kinda depends on which tradition we're talking about. Christmas is a Christian holiday, observed by most on December 25. An animation shows a December calendar. The twenty-fifth is marked with the image of a Christmas tree. TIM: But there are more than two billion Christians all over the world… An animation shows the Earth spinning in the night sky. Tiny people appear all over the Earth to represent where Christians live. TIM: Split up into dozens of denominations, or branches of the religion. And their Christmas traditions are as varied as they are! The people change colors to represent different denominations. TIM: For instance, parts of the Eastern Orthodox Church celebrate on January seventh. An animation shows a January calendar. The seventh is marked with the image of a Christmas tree. Moby calls down from upstairs. MOBY: Beep. TIM: One thing that’s agreed upon is that Christmas honors the birth of Jesus. Christians believe he’s the son of God. An animation shows a stained-glass window with the image of baby Jesus. TIM: He was a Jew who led a movement to reform Judaism with a new set of teachings. An animation shows another stained-glass window with a grown-up version of Jesus. He is depicted preaching to a group of people. TIM: His movement eventually grew into a new religion, Christianity. It was founded on the idea that following Jesus’s teachings would lead to eternal life. On Christmas and Christmas Eve, lots of Christians attend church and hear the story of his birth. The animation reveals that the stained-glass images are part of a Christian church. Christians kneel in prayer on Christmas. TIM: According to the Christian Bible, Jesus was born in a stable, where horses and other animals are kept. So instead of a crib, he slept in a feeding box called a manger. An animation shows small figurines of Jesus and his parents. They're in a stable with other animals. The baby is lying in a manger. TIM: A group of angels appeared to some shepherds to share the news. And three wise men saw a brilliant star in the sky, pointing them toward Jesus. They brought gifts and worshipped him as he slept. An animation shows figurines of the angels, wise men, and the star. Moby finally decides to come downstairs and join Tim. MOBY: Beep? TIM: Actually, the Bible doesn't say what time of year it was. And Christmas wasn't even a holiday at first. For a few hundred years, Christianity was a small but rapidly growing faith. An animation shows a map of the area near the Mediterranean Sea. Red markings appear in the places where Christianity first started to spread. TIM: Wherever it spread, it was surrounded by older, more established religions. Most of which had mid-winter holidays. To get through the darkest days of the year, folks came together for festivals of light. Candles appear on the map where festivals of light occurred. TIM: In Northern Europe, they celebrated Yule. Families burned big logs to light up the night, and decorated evergreens to symbolize life. An animation shows Europeans gathered around a large bonfire. The surrounding trees are decorated with ornaments. People cheer and clink their glasses together. TIM: They toasted a bearded warrior god named Odin who rode a flying horse through the night. An animation shows Odin riding his horse through the night sky. TIM: Meanwhile, over in Rome, they were celebrating Saturnalia. The rowdy weeklong party honored Saturn, the Roman god of agriculture. People feasted, exchanged small gifts, and partied in the streets. An animation shows a Roman celebration of Saturnalia. A sculpture of Saturn is in the center. People play music, laugh, and drink. TIM: The Christian Church wanted to attract converts from these other religions. So, in the 4th century, it officially declared that Christmas was December 25th—the same day Romans celebrated the birthdays of several gods. An animation shows a Christian clergyman looking down on the Saturnalia party from a church window. He walks to his calendar and writes "Merry Christmas!" on December twentyfifth. MOBY: Beep? TIM: Yup, it was a clever way to win over new Christians. But those converts often brought their old traditions with them. Like, bringing trees into the home to decorate, which the Germans did. An animation shows a potted fir tree on a table, decorated with apples, nuts, dates, and paper flowers. TIM: And honoring a jolly old man who brings presents to kids, like the Dutch. Their patron saint of children is St. Nicholas, nicknamed Sinterklaas. He's depicted as a tall grandpa figure in red, with a big white beard. An animation shows Sinterklaas. He looks as Tim described, and he’s sitting on a white horse in the center of a snowy town square. TIM: Pretty similar to how folks picture Santa Claus, right? An image shows a modern-day Santa Claus on a Christmas card. TIM: Church officials didn't necessarily approve of these local variations. But it was a price they were willing to pay to spread the religion. An animation shows a Christian pope looking at the Christmas card. At first he seems concerned. Then he shrugs and tosses the card over his shoulder. TIM: To this day, Christians around the world celebrate in their own unique ways. In Iceland, folks exchange books on Christmas Eve, then read all evening. An animation shows Iceland on a map and two people reading books by a fireplace. TIM: While in the capital of Venezuela, streets are closed so families can roller-skate to church! An animation shows Venezuela on a map and a person roller-skating. TIM: Ukrainians decorate trees with spider-web ornaments. An animation shows Ukraine on a map and a tree decorated with spider webs. TIM: In Japan, the traditional Christmas Day meal is fried chicken—from a certain American fast food chain! An animation shows Japan on a map and two people holding chicken drumsticks. MOBY: Beep? TIM: Yeah, only about 1 percent of Japanese people are Christians. But in lots of places, it's almost like there are two Christmases: The sacred observance for Christians only… An animation shows Christians in a church, kneeling and praying. TIM: And the secular, or non-religious, celebration that anyone can join in on. Between that and all the other mid-winter festivities, the holiday spirit pretty much takes over the entire month! An animation shows people ice skating at Rockefeller Center. Moby glides by holding Tim up in the air above his head. MOBY: Beep? TIM: Well, Christmas has always been a mix of the religious and the secular. In fact, two secular sources are responsible for the holiday’s modern image. First, an 1820s story collection by New York author Washington Irving. An animation shows a book. Text on the front says “Washington Irving’s The Sketchbook.” TIM: You've probably heard of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," about the ghost of a headless horseman… The book opens and a headless horseman gallops on top of the book’s pages. TIM: Or "Rip Van Winkle," about a man who falls asleep for 20 years. The headless horseman is replaced by an old man, sleeping by a tree. TIM: Another story describes a wealthy family's Christmas celebration at home. They invite the poor over to join their party, and everyone mingles happily. These stories promoted a version of Christmas focused on harmony and charity. The old man is replaced by a Victorian family sitting down at a dining room table, sharing a meal together. TIM: A couple decades later in England, Charles Dickens published A Christmas Carol. It's the story of Scrooge, a mean old man who can't stand the holiday season. An animation shows Moby sipping tea in front of the fire and looking cranky. TIM: On Christmas Eve, he's visited by a series of ghosts who show him the error of his ways. A ghost of a robot appears in front of Moby. Moby jumps and hides behind his chair. TIM: By the end of the story, he's completely changed: He donates to the poor and gives his employee a turkey—a Christmas custom many folks then adopted. An animation shows Moby in a top hat and looking cheerful as another robot carves a turkey. TIM: Scrooge's story redefined "the spirit of Christmas" for readers around the world. New productions of plays and movies based on it come out every year. MOBY: Beep? TIM: No, these stories aren't so much about religion. But their ideas seem directly inspired by the teachings of Jesus. In the Bible, Jesus talks about the importance of spreading peace and love. An animation shows a snapshot of Tim and Moby hugging. TIM: About being charitable, accepting other people, and being a good neighbor. An animation shows a snapshot of Tim and Moby volunteering in a soup kitchen, and another snapshot of them shoveling an elderly neighbor’s driveway. TIM: Those are values we can call get behind, regardless of religion! Even a grumpy old coot like Moby, here. Moby has disappeared. Tim hears something at the door. He opens it to see Moby with the caroling bots, playing an electronic version of "12 Days of Christmas." Moby is in a top hat and wrapped in strings colorful Christmas lights. He’s playing a loud, crashing cymbal along with the music. TIM: Well, humbug. Tim shuts the door.Category:BrainPOP Transcripts Category:BrainPOP Social Studies Transcripts